Modern AU One-shot
by SweetWritingIsMyLife
Summary: His arms were around her, almost numbing the pain. Occasionally, his hand would come up to stroke her hair, and she relished the feeling of security it brought because right now, her world was anything but secure. Modern AU one shot. No swearing.


**A/N: Just a quick idea that came to me the other day. Hope you enjoy it and please review. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own HTTYD, I just mess with the characters for fun.**

His arms were around her, almost numbing the pain. Occasionally, his hand would come up to stroke her hair, and she relished the feeling of security it brought because right now, her world was anything but secure.

A few hours earlier:

Astrid Hofferson put the finishing touches on her hair and makeup, then straightened her dress. Her boyfriend Scott Jorgensen would be at her apartment to pick her up any minute now. A knock sounded at her front door. She opened it to see Scott standing there.

"Hey babe, ready to go?" He said, as a way of greeting.

"Just let me put my shoes on and grab my purse," she said. She slipped on a pair of stylish blue heels, and grabbed her blue purse. Blue was her favorite color, if you couldn't tell. A white cat came over and rubbed against her ankles.

"Bye Stormfly," she said petting the feline's head.

"Are you coming?" Scott asked, rather loudly.

"I'm right here," she said, rolling her eyes and stepping out of her apartment. She locked the door, then turned to walk towards Scott's car.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He said, grabbing her wrist. She turned around, confused as to what he might mean, then his lips met hers. She pulled away from the kiss.

"Kiss me later," she scowled. "I don't want to be late to the movie." They left for the movie. It was a war movie, one Scott had wanted to see, not her, and now halfway through it she was wishing she hadn't given in. It wasn't that it was too scary, or gory, that kind of stuff didn't bother her. The problem was that soldiers were dying and talking about how much they missed their families back home. That was really effective in dredging up oh so pleasant reminders of her dad, who had died, in war. There was one particular moment that brought her emotional dam crashing down. A soldier was dying, and his last breath was used to tell a fellow man the following words.

"Tell my wife… and daughter… I l-love th-them."

Astrid broke down into tears, clutching at Scott like a lifeline. He pushed her away.

"Get off me, I'm trying to enjoy the movie," he hissed. So she cried into her arm, hugging herself. So much for having a caring boyfriend to comfort her. The night only went from bad to worse. After the movie Scott made notice of the fact that her makeup had run badly. He proceeded to opt out on taking her to a restaurant, saying instead that it would be better to just have dinner at her house. So they went back to her apartment. Predictably, she got stuck cooking the meal, while he sat on her couch watching TV. Astrid grumbled as she seasoned a couple of steaks. She personally was a vegan, but in order to accommodate for the fact that Scott definitely was not vegan, she always had a small supply of meats just for occasions like this. Claiming to be vegan and cooking meat for her boyfriend felt hypocritical to her, but it was better than his idea of an alternative. One day she had told him how she felt, and he tried to convince her that it would be easier if she just started eating meat. As if. Nevertheless the fact stood that Scott loved meat, and she therefore, being the good, loving girlfriend, cooked it for him. His steak was ready, and she was working on her veggie burger, when he came over and twirled her around suddenly.

"Scott, I'm trying to make dinner!" She said trying to turn back around.

"Hey, I just want a kiss, babe," he said pouting.

"Ugh, fine one kiss," she consented. Scott wasted no time in closing the distance between them. His lips eagerly searched for hers, grabbing at them hungrily. She tried to pull away, but he was gripping her tightly when he finally let her go, she punched his arm.

"I'm trying to make dinner here," she said crossly. She pushed on his chest. "Get out of my kitchen, and let me cook in peace," she demanded. She cried out in surprise when Scott pushed her. He pushed hard enough that she was given enough momentum to send her flying back into the counter. Her hand desperately clutched at the counter to try and stop herself from falling. Astrid hit the counter with a thud, knocking the wind out of her lungs, and bringing water to her eyes.

"Obviously this night is not working out," Scott said. He grabbed his two steaks, put them in a ziplock bag, and stalked out of the apartment. After catching her breath, Astrid shut off the burner that was blackening her veggie patty, and walked to her room. She grabbed a thick foam axe, and began hitting things with it. She sure hoped her neighbors couldn't hear her grunts, and shouts of anger. When her phone went off, she glanced at the screen in a moment of stupidity. The message was from Scott, and she read it. Hey babe, sorry about tonight, but I guess it was kind of okay, cuz it made me realize how incompatible we are. I already talked to Heather, and she said she'd be glad to fill the void I'll have after you're gone. So I guess this is goodbye. Maybe we can still be friends. Astrid texted him back with a long list of expletives. Then she texted Heather, her best friend. She told her what Scott had said, and asked if it was true. Her answer was concise, and at least honest.

Yeah, sorry he's too hot to pass up.

The next thing she did was dial Hayden Haddock's number.

"Hayden here," came his voice over the phone line.

"H-Hayden? I-it's Astrid," She tried to force the quiver out of her voice.

"What's up?" He asked.

"C-can you come over?" She questioned.

"Is something wrong?" The genuine concern in his voice brought her to her breaking point. She took a shaky breath.

"I-I just- something happened, and I-I don't trust myself to be alone. I might do something I regret later."

"I'll be there in ten minutes," he said immediately. "Do you want me to stay on the phone with you until I get there?"

"I'll be fine," she said trying to retain some last shred of dignity.

"I'll be there before you know it." Once he arrived, she poured out the evening's story to him. Much as she tried, she could not stop the tears from escaping from her eyes. When she got to the part about her message to Heather, her walls came crashing down, and she ended up in a heap on the floor, crying almost hysterically. That was when Hayden had knelt down, and put his arms around her.

"It's okay," he murmured soothingly. "He's a jerk, and he's not worth your time." She stayed in his arms, basking in his comfort and security. When she had calmed down, he went over to grab his backpack. Reaching inside, he pulled out a container.

"Here," he said. "I brought you some leftover casserole. It's vegan. If you want, while you're eating, I can go through and get rid of all of the meat and stuff in your fridge and freezer."

"You'd do that?" Astrid said in surprise.

"Sure," he replied, getting up. When his task was finished, along with her dinner, they sat on the couch. Astrid had sat at the end of the couch, first, and Hayden respectfully sat at the other end.

"What's the matter, do I stink or something?" Astrid quipped.

"Uh no, I just wasn't sure if- well if you-"

"Get over here," Astrid said, a smile in her voice. He scooted over, and she punched his arm.

"Ow, what was that for?" He whined.

"That's for being a dork," Astrid said. She gave him a kiss. "And that's for everything else. Thanks for being here for me."

"I could get used to this," Hayden grinned. Astrid smiled devilishly. She punched him again.

"Ow! What is it with you and violence?!" Both of them dissolved into fits of laughter. Hours later, Hayden finally decided he needed to leave. As Astrid was getting into bed that night, she marveled at how Hayden could turn such a terrible start of an evening, into something so fun.


End file.
